QUICK QUIZ

Father Figures

by Victor Turks

1. This father of Italian Opera is honored with
   a gilded monument erected to him behind the
   band shell in Golden Gate Park.
      a. Gioachino Rossini
      b. Giacomo Puccini
      c. Giuseppe Verdi
2. What SF KYA disc jockey was inducted into the
    Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 as
   a non-performer. “Big Daddy” —
      a. Tom Donahue
      b. Alan Freed
      c. Dick Clark
3.  This IMAX Martin Scorsese documentary opened
   at the Metreon spotlighting a band of ancient men
   still carrying on like happy-go-lucky teenagers.
      a. Jumping Jack Flash
      b. Shine a Light   
      c. Sympathy for the Devil
4. Home to Sam Spade’s Lamb Chops and the
   Maltese Falcon, this Ellis  street restaurant is also
   headquarters of the Dashiell Hammett Society.
      a. John’s Grill
      b. The Edinburgh Castle
      c. Julius’ Castle
5. Back in the days of frijoles, the lariat, and vaque-
   ros on horseback, this Kentucky newspaper man
   served as one of San Francisco’s first mayors
   when California was a province of Mexico:
      a. Sam Brannan
      b. Edwin Bryant
      c. James K. Polk
6. “I have always enjoyed working with young peo-
   ple. Their minds are totally unconditioned by pre-
   conceptions and previous experience.” So says the
   latter-day “father” of the SF Boys Chorus, which
   will perform its 60th anniversary concert June 15:
      a. Ian Robertson
      b. Gaetano Merola 
      c. Donald Runnicles
7.The Chinese of California; A Struggle for
   Community — this current exhibit at the
   California Historical Society at 678 Mission Street
   recounts:
      a. the unique challenges Chinese Americans
      faced in their struggle for civil rights
      b. discrimination and attacks against them
      c. exclusionary legislation directed at them
      d. all of the above
8. At a recent Earth Day Celebration at San Francisco
   City College, this British polar explorer reminded
   students that dreams can come true if you try
   hard enough.
      a. Baron Attenborough
      b. Robert Swan
      c. Captain Robert Falcon Scott
9.  Frank Norris Alley in Polk Gulch is named after the
   author of:
      a. The Jungle and Oil
      b. On the Road and Satori in Paris
      c. The Pit and McTeague
10.The annual SF International Film Festival presented
   an afternoon with Robert Towne, who once credit-
   ed his dog with a script he wrote. The script was:
      a.found chewed to confetti on the
      kitchen floor
      b. nominated for an Oscar
      c. made into the movie All Dogs Go to Heaven

Answers:

1.   c (1813-1901)
2.   a
3.   b (The film celebrates The Rolling Stones.)
4.   a (since 1908)
5.   b
6.   a (Robertson is artistic director of the SF Boys Chorus.)
7.   d
8.   b (With help from students worldwide, Swan led
       a major clean-up of the South Pole.)
9.   c
10. b (the movie: Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan,
            Lord of the Apes, 1984)

     Victor Turks grew up in San Francisco and lives in the Richmond with his wife, Michiko, their three boys, a pug, a cat, and a tankful of goldfish. He teaches English at City College..